Many types of wild game calls are available on the market. Calls of the box and striker type generally include a striking plate made of slate, glass, or other material, which striking plate provides a striking surface. The striking plate is mounted on a box. A striker is provided, which may be handheld or pivotally attached so that the striker can be easily moved across the striking surface to generate a desired sound. Calls utilizing a box and striker are very popular among hunters because they provide the advantage of allowing the user to widely vary the sound of the call. For example, hunters can vary the sound generated by a particular call through selection of the composition, friction coefficient, and shape of the handheld striker. Additionally, different sounds can be generated by varying the movement and duration of contact of the handheld striker in relation to the striking surface.
However, the sound quality and variety of known calls is limited by the structure of known striking plates and box configurations. In all known boxes, the striking plate is coexistent with the box. In other words, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,648,852, the extension of the striking plate is defined by an area equal to and positioned in vertically overlying alignment with the vertical interior walls of the box or sound chamber. This limits the quality, volume, and variety of sounds, which can be produced by the user.
Additionally, in all known calls, the striking plate is comprised of a solid homogeneous piece or pieces of frictional material such as glass, slate, weather resistant thermoplastic, such as PLEXIGLAS® thermoplastic, or wood. PLEXIGLAS® is a registered trademark of Atofina, a French corporation based in Puteaux France. Thus, known striking plates are very rigid, and possess very limited resonance properties. These properties further limit the quality, volume, and variety of sounds, which can be produced by the user.
In light of the prior art, it would be beneficial to provide a wild game call of the box and striking plate variety that overcomes the deficiencies of the prior art. In particular, there is a continuing need for wild game calls that can easily produce superior sound variety, sound quality, and volume control with minimal user input.